Drain gage



May 3, 1955 w. c. SCHWARTZ 2,707,452

DRAIN GAGE Filed Jan. 16, 1955 z V i Wi//ie 0. Schwarz INVENTOR. 28 BY @M 20 www* 15mm xmmnlll-Mm Unite States Patent DRAIN GAGE Willie C. Schwartz, Abilene, Tex.

Application January 16, 1953, Seria! No. 331,569

1 Ciaim. (Ci. li-118) This invention relates to a visible indicator associated tion for the drain pipe is provided at the bottom of the storage tank and a valve is provided for permitting the iiow of iluid through the drain pipe. Heretobefore it has been necessary to open the valve and then let the fluid iiow until oil begins showing at the end of the drain pipe at which time the valve is shut. This causes a substantial waste ol oil due to the fact that the oil flowing during the time between the iirst notice of the oil and the time at which the valve is shut will be lost as will the oil that is situated between the valve and the end of the drain pipe. lt is quite possible to station one man at the end of the drain pipe and one man at the valve but this is entirely unsatisfactory due to the scarcity of labor and its relatively high cost. Accordingly, it is the particular object of this invention to provide means for eliminating the waste heretofore incorporated in the process of separation of Water and other waste products from the oil in a storage tank.

Another important object of this invention resides in the provision of a visible indicator that may be readily inserted in existing structures of the drain pipe with a minimum of eliort, which drain indicator employs means for informing an observer of the time to shut the drain valve.

Still further objects and features of this invention reside in the provision of a drain indicator that is strong and durable, simple in construction and application, and which may be readily manufactured out of readily available materials at an exceedingly low cost.

These, together with the various ancillary objects and features of the invention which will become apparent as the following description proceeds, are attained by this drain indicator, a preferred embodiment of which has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings, by Way of example only, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view showing the device as applied to the drain pipe of an oil storage tank;

Figure 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the drain indicator comprising the present invention; and

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view as taken along the plane of line 3-3 in Figure 1.

With continuing reference to the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals designate similar parts throughout the various views, reference numeral 10 generally designates an oil storage tank of conventional rice construction which is provided adjacent its space with a drain pipe outlet 12 to which a drain pipe 14 is secured. There is provided a valve 16 for permitting tlow of iiuids out of the storage tank 10 into the waste pit 1S situated a considerable distance from the storage` tank 10. The drain pipe 14 is further provided with a conventional T- iitting 20 which has a cap removably secured therein in order to permit the drain pipe to be ushed and cleaned.

The drain indicator comprising the present invention is generally indicated at 22 and includes a casing 24 or body which is formed from any suitable transparent material such as Plexiglas, a suitable synthetic resin such as polystyrene, or from glass. The body 24 is threaded as at 26 at its lowermost portion and is engaged within a connector 28 which is threadedly secured to the T-iitting 20 in lieu of the cap of the T-tting. The body is provided with a sharply convergent neck portion 30 at its upper end which terminates in a neck ange 32 about which a cap 34 is threadedly secured.

in operation, this device will readily indicate when oil is about to pass into the drain tube 14 in lieu of water or other impurities. As is wel] known during the ow of the impurities out of the drain pipe 14, a certain amount of turbulence is inherent. When any oil is sucked down into the drain pipe 14 it will readily rise to the top of the iowing liquid. The oil will then rise and remain within the drain indicator 22 and when any substantial amount is visible within the transparent body 24 the operator knows that the valve 16 should be shut. The cap 34 is provided for venting the body 24 so that the tluid may rise therein without causing any trapping of the air within the body. Further, the cap 34 is highly desirable for both cleaning the indicator .22 or to apply a hose for iiushing the body 24 and hence the drain pipe 14.

Since from the foregoing, the construction and advantages of this drain gage are readily apparent, further description is believed to be unnecessary.

However, since numerous modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art after a consideration of the foregoing specification and accompanying drawings, it is not intended to limit the invention to the precise embodiment shown and described, but all suitable modiiications and equivalents may be readily resorted to that fall within the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

A drain indicator for use in combination with oil storage tanks having a drain pipe for impurities, said drain pipe having a cleaning outlet, said drain indicator comprising a hollow substantially cylindrical body of transparent material, a connector threadedly secured to said body, said connector being threadedly secured to said drain pipe in said cleaning outlet, said body having an upper neck section of substantially reduced crosssectional area, said neck section being externally threaded and a cap threadedly secured to the upper portion of said body.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,778,840 Wale Oct. 21, 1930 2,374,142 Steven Apr, 17, 1945 2,481,882 Sebald et al. Sept. 13, 1949 2,611,448 Walls Sept. 23, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 204,501 Great Britain Oct. 4, 1923 50,940 Sweden Feb. 14, 1922 

